1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a controller by which wireless operations are possible and, more particularly, to a controller by which operations of plural operation objects are possible by switching the display of the operation surface of an operation member.
2. Description of the Related Art
Electronic apparatuses, such as television receivers, are supplied with wireless controllers so that various operations become possible from a remote position. The surface of the controller is provided with button switches by which a channel can be selected and the sound volume can be adjusted.
Recently, with the increasing popularity of the Internet, controllers have appeared which enable the browsing of home pages (web pages) and transmission and reception of mail by using the screen of a television receiver. This type of controller is provided with an input mechanism to be used for mail operation, in addition to the input mechanism for selecting a channel. During mail operation, a key arrangement of a keyboard device is displayed on, for example, the television screen, and the appropriate input mechanism is operated on the basis of this display screen.
However, in the above-described conventional controller, when many functions are added, the number of operation keys which form the combined input mechanism increases correspondingly, and the ease of operation is compromised. The controller becomes large and cumbersome. Furthermore, if controllers for selecting a channel and for using the Internet are provided separately, the management and storage of controllers becomes inconvenient. In addition, if other devices such as video recorders for recording and replaying videotapes, and other functions are added to the controller, the number of operation keys further increases, and the ease of operation, etc., is further compromised.
The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems. It is an object of the present invention to provide a controller to which many functions may be added without compromising the ease of operation.
To achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides a controller which enables wireless communication between an operation member and a host. The operation member comprises a transmission mechanism, an input mechanism, and a display member for displaying an input portion of the input means, the display member is capable of changing the display of an input portion and/or an input item of the input portion. A control section generates a transmission signal corresponding to the display of the display member when the input mechanism is operated.
The input mechanism may be a planar input device to which a coordinate position can be input, and the display member may be overlaid on the planar input device.
In the present invention, since the displays of input portions and input items are switched according to the function, it becomes unnecessary to provide an operation member with many input portions and input items, and the ease of operation can be improved. Moreover, it becomes possible to reduce the size of the operation member. Furthermore, since the input portions and the input items can be easily changed, operation members specialized for respective hosts are not formed, the operation members are shared, and only the display member is changed. Therefore, handling various hosts can be easily performed.
For example, the display member may be a display sheet which can be attached to and detached from the operation member. A determination mechanism may determine the type of the display sheet attached, and the control section generates a transmission signal according to the type of display sheet determined by the determination mechanism.
Each display sheet may be provided with a cutout or a projection at a different position according to the type thereof, and the existence of the cutout or the projection may be determined by the determination mechanism. Alternatively a bar code may be formed, and the type of the display sheet determined by the determination mechanism.
The display member may be a display panel capable of switching display contents, and an input portion and/or an input item displayed on the display panel may be switched in accordance with a switching signal supplied from the host to the operation member.
Only basic input portions may be displayed on the display panel, and when the functions are to be switched, the above-mentioned display sheet may further be overlaid on the display panel, so that an operation is performed.
The above and further objects, aspects and novel features of the invention will become more fully apparent from the following detailed description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
In another aspect of the present invention, a controller enables wireless communication between an operation member and a host, where the operation member comprises, a transmission mechanism, an input mechanism, a display member that displays an input portion of said input mechanism and a control section. The input portion includes input items, the display of one of the input portion and at least one input item being changeable, with the display member being overlaid on the input mechanism. A control section generates a transmission signal corresponding to a display of the display member when the input mechanism is operated. The display member is a display panel having display contents that are switched by the operation member, and one of the input portions and at least one input items displayed on the display panel are switched in accordance with a switching signal supplied from the host to said operation member.